Napa, CA family photography: great wine, great light, and a great family.

napa is gorgeous. i don't think there is anyone who would say different to that statement. i have only been there twice now, and both times, i was in awe. september is harvest. all the grapes are hanging from the vines, just waiting to be plucked and turned into a delicious vintage. my sister came along with me for the drive up to napa so i could do a couple sessions and along the way, we pulled over (first for a napa flea market, then for some pictures of the vineyards) to enjoy the views, even though we had the three little men with us too. we were determined to make the most out of the invite up to the valley!


joe is third generation napa valley. his family runs a printing company that creates the labels for many of the wineries up there, so needless to say, he knows the good ones to go to! he called in a favor to a friend, and got us exclusive entry to a private vineyard (do we sound elite or what!!), and oh emm geee, it was beautiful! tudal wineries has everything i love: an old barn, ivy covered walls, old mismatched tables and chairs, all eclectically arranged to make it feel as if each piece has always been there, and it is only added to as needed. i was in heaven. 


add to that, the family itself: beautiful people both inside and out. natalie and joe met when she was 15, a sweet soul with a big heart, and although it took quite a few years on and off before they were married, they are now celebrating 6 years of marriage and two beautiful, energetic little boys: thomas and adam. 
we had the perfect lighting for our sunset photo session, and i had fun chasing the boys through the rows of vines, playing peek-a-boo between the grapes! 


natalie and joe: thank you for inviting me to capture your family's photos in such a gorgeous location! i loved getting to know you and your boys at dinner (complete with another round of milks), and hope we can do it again soon- set up that guest bedroom, i'm bringing the fam!!!

san jose children's photographer: adriana in one!!

it didn't take much to get this little princess to smile pretty. in fact, she even has down "smizing", you know, smiling with your eyes, at the young age of one! 

i think her parents will need to lock her away till she is 25, or they will have all the little boys chasing after her! 

happy birthday adriana! you are one beautiful little girl! 

san francisco engagement session: kristin and prateek

it all started at work. prateek was the new guy who walked past kristin's desk and said hello. although she was instantly interested in him, she played hard to get, turning down his offer of dinner and going out. (she needed to help re-shingle her sister's roof. seriously. was her sock drawer to be organized next?) he almost gave up.
it wasn't until he invited a group of mutual work friends to see point break live, that it all changed. it could have been the stellar acting (they pull keanu's character straight out of the audience, and just have him read cue cards), or the alcohol they had been drinking. they weren't quite sure. but regardless, they finally gave in and held hands. after that, it was love. he proposed in a hot air balloon while in aspen ("i didn't want her to be able to run when i asked") and since, their wedding plans have been quickly set under way!
we spent a morning in san francisco's golden gate park, expecting overcast and gloomy weather (as san fran is famous for), and instead was greeted with warmth and blue sunny skies!

kristin and prateek, thank you for a great morning in the city! i had a great day with you, and look forward to the excitement of your wedding next year!

 

granada hills wedding: tears flow like water!

lets play a quick game of i've never. the rules of the game, if you have done whatever i say i have never done, then you have to stand up and do jumping jacks. 

1. i have never had fun at a wedding. 

2. i have never cried while at a wedding.

(are you jumping yet?)

3. i have never cried while i'm supposed to be photographing the wedding.

4. i have never laid on the floor, in the middle of the guys huddle, to be able to get pictures of them instead of their butts on the dance floor.

ok, that last one most of you probably haven't done, but yes, i did it during brittany and romy's wedding at the odyssey in granada hills last weekend. and it was worth the pictures! 

brittany and romy sure know how to throw a party! i honestly have never had more fun at a wedding than i did at theirs. their friends and family love them, and love to have a good time, so combine those two elements, and you know it will be a great time. 

not just was it a fun time, but the tears! my god i don't think there were too many dry eyes at all throughout the day! starting when brittany had both her grandfather and father walk her down the aisle, to the first toasts in the reception. tears flowed like water!  during both the father/daughter and mother/son dances, i caught myself tearing up and having to do a quick regroup so i could see through the viewfinder of the camera! it could be i was thinking about my dance with my own daddy, or it could have been that i was envisioning myself dancing with one of my boys at their wedding 20+ years from now (i know, i know, get them off to school first), or it could have just been seeing the love that brittany and romy both share for their parents. my waterproof mascara got a workout that day, and i thank the maybelline gods that i didn't have anything running down my cheeks!

i'll leave y'all with this one. the love just oozes off of them! i might have to do a traugh wedding part deux to show the fun we had during the reception! 

mine, all mine

blessed. 

as a mom

as a wife

as a friend.

i am blessed with an amazing life.

these two make my life complete

i pray they grow up to be the best of friends,

there to support each other, 

and always look out for each other

they are both the sweetest souls on the planet,

and they are mine, all mine! 

dana point wedding photography: flying solo

i'm a lover of love. a helpless romantic. i'm the girl who will help you plan your wedding because i planned mine when i was 11 years old (down to the color of the napkins and what meals would be served), and now that i am married, would love to relive those months of planning with you. i love weddings. last weekend, i had the honor to shoot my first solo wedding. yep. me. and just me. no body else. if you want to ask 'kym, were you nervous?" i'll volunteer my answer before you can even get the second syllable out of your mouth. yes. not because i didn't know what to shoot, and not because i wasn't sure if i would remember my settings and where to stand and if i would shoot everything in focus or if for some reason my camera would just shut down completely. naaaw, i had that part in the bag. but because this wedding was on a bluff, over the ocean, at 11:30 am. on a cloudless day. so what? you are wondering. it sounds gorgeous right? right! but well, high noon is about the harshest light you can get to try and shoot soft pretty pictures in. think about when you read a sundial, how small and dark that little shadow is coming off the triangle, letting you know, yes, it is midday. now imagine that coming off every nose in a picture. hmmmm, i had me some work to do! but regardless of the time of day, and regardless of if my nerves had me all discombobulated, it was a beautiful ceremony at a lovely location, with two amazing people committing their love to each other. and i think i rocked it. no matter what time of day it was!

lisa and josh, i thank you for trusting me, bymyself, to shoot your wedding for you! it was a lovely day and i wish you both nothing but happiness. as i say to my own husband every day, fall in love with each other a little more everyday, so tomorrow is always a better day than today. regardless of how amazing today was!